Walking the Tightrope: Navigating Faculty Status as a Mandatory Reporter in the #MeToo Era

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-23-2021

Publication Title

Journal of Criminal Justice Education

First page number:

1

Last page number:

15

Abstract

One of the goals of the #MeToo movement is to elevate the voices of survivors. Course content related to sexual victimization often stresses the importance of understanding the experiences of victims of crime, and it is likely that such discussions result in student disclosures of sexual victimization to faculty. At the same time, institutions of higher education have created policies, such as making professors “mandatory reporters,” which require them to report disclosures to Title IX coordinators irrespective of a student’s desire to report. This essay will unpack the complicated nature of supporting survivors on campus in the #MeToo era: Where on the one hand, victims are encouraged to tell their story, but on the other hand, institutional policies may remove their agency if they do. As #MeToo has advanced our understanding of sexual victimization experiences, it should also help improve our policies responding to those empowered by the movement.

Keywords

Title IX; Sexual misconduct; Compelled disclosure; Resupportive reporting

Disciplines

Criminology and Criminal Justice | Human Resources Management

Language

English

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